Results of RecycleMania 2009 revealed

Wisconsin campuses participating in RecycleMania recovered more than two million pounds of recyclables and organics.

Nationwide, 510 college campuses participated in RecycleMania in 2009, up from 400 campuses the previous year. Wisconsin’s participation increased from 10 state colleges and universities to 16.

The main goal of this event is to increase student awareness of campus recycling and waste minimization.

Colleges and universities chose to participate in one of two divisions: competition or benchmark. The Competition Division houses the traditional competitive rankings based on standard tracking and reporting criteria. The Benchmark Division allows schools to unofficially compare themselves with other schools and to promote RecycleMania on campus without the formal reporting requirements of the competitive ranking.

Within each division, schools participate in any of eight categories. Below are highlights of the final results for the Wisconsin competitors:

The Grand Champion top five Wisconsin finalists, determined by the percentage of overall waste that was recycled over 10 weeks, are:

UW-Stevens Point (37.64 percent)

UW-River Falls (32.16 percent)

UW-Whitewater (28.70 percent)

UW-La Crosse (23.53 percent)

UW-Stout (23.45 percent)

The Per Capita Classic top five Wisconsin finalists, determined by total pounds of recyclables collected per person over 10 weeks, are:

UW-Stevens Point (16.59 percent)

UW-Eau Claire (13.59 percent)

UW Oshkosh (9.74 percent)

UW-Whitewater (9.69 percent)

Northland College (9.66 percent)

The Waste Minimization top three Wisconsin finalists, determined by the lowest overall amount of waste (recyclables and trash) per person over 10 weeks, are:

UW-Whitewater (33.76 pounds)

UW-Stout (34.39 pounds)

UW-Stevens Point (44.08 pounds)

The Gorilla Prize top five Wisconsin finalists, determined by the highest cumulative weight of recyclables over 10 weeks, are:

UW-Stevens Point (76.91 tons)

UW-Eau Claire (73.23 tons)

UW Oshkosh (53.58 tons)

UW-Whitewater (51 tons)

UW-Stout (34.46 tons)

In addition to these main categories, schools also compete in targeted material categories to see who can recycle the most paper, cardboard, cans and bottles, and food waste on a per capita basis.

RecycleMania is administered by the National Recycling Coalition (NRC), as a project of NRC’s College and University Recycling Council (CURC). RecycleMania is championed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WasteWise program and The Coca-Cola Company.